Praying stand



May 13, 1924. 1,493,971

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1922 5 Sheets-Sheet Patented May 13, 1924.

UNITED STATES SANTE DUCA, on NEW YORK, N. Y.

rRAYING STAND.

Original application filed July 18, 1922, Serial No. 575,843.

Serial No. 806,145.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, SANTE DUCA, a citizen of the United States, residing at New York, in the county and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Praying Stands, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact specification.

This invention relates to praying stands, and has for its object to provide such a stand with a collapsible book rack adapted to be folded and retracted within the body of the stand when not in use, and projected and supported on the stand when in use.

It is the aim of the invention to provide a devotional stand with a desk and stool, and a collapsible book rack for supporting a prayer or hymn book on the desk where it may be conveniently used by the worshiper when kneeling on the stool. The arrangement of the collapsible book rack is such that when it is retracted into the stand the desk is left without projections, the top of said desk being substantially smooth and unbroken in contour.

Another object is to provide automatic locking means for securing the book rack in extended position above the desk, said looking means being actuated as the rack itself is expanded after being withdrawn from the stand or folded preparatory to being retracted. Said frame or rack may also be adjusted to different inclinations without releasing the automatic locking means. Other objects will appearas the description proceeds.

This application is a division of my copending application for praying or confessional stands, filed July 18, 1922, Ser. No. 575,843.

The present invention will be first hereinafter described in connection with the accompanying drawings, which constitute part of this specification, and then more specifically defined in the claims at the end of the description.

In the accompanying drawings, wherein similar reference characters are used to designate corresponding parts throughout the several views Figure 1 is a side elevation of the praying stand with the book rack retracted into the desk thereof. 4

Figure 2 is a front elevation of said stand with the book rack in the same position as in Figure 1.

Divided and this application filed December Figure 3 is a plan view of the desk also with the book rack retracted.

Figure 4 is a rear elevation corresponding to the front elevation in Figure 2.

Figure 5 is a broken Vertical section taken on the line V-V of Figure 4:.

Figure is a front elevation of the upper portion of the stand with the book rack projected.

Figure 7 is a broken section of the upper portion of the stand taken on the line VIT VII of Figure 6.

The stand 1 may consist of two side members 2 supporting the desk 3at their upper ends, and having forward extensions 4 on their lower portions for supporting the stool or bench 5. The rear side edges of the side members 2 may be braced at their lower portions by a cross piece 6 shown in Figures 1, 2

and 4.

The desk 3 has a transverse slot 23 adapted to be closed by a strip 24 secured to the upperedge of a book rack frame or easel 25 having a book-supporting ledge 26 along its lower edge. The easel 25 is pivoted at 27 to links or runners 28 braced by a cross rod 29 the end of which extend into grooves or ways of channel bars 30 secured to a frame 31 arranged between the side members 2 of the stand and located in vertical alinement with the slot 23 in the desk. The cross rod 29 has depending rods 32 attached thereto and reaching down through the lower transverse member 33 of the frame 31, the lower extremities of said rods 32 having cotter pins or other abutments 34 for contacting with the under face of said member 33 to limit the upward movement of the book rack, see Figure 7.

An easel-supporting frame 35 is pivoted to the links or runners 28 and adapted to fold flat upon the easel, as shown in Figure 5, when the book rack is retracted into the stand, or to swing rearwardly to horizontal position, as'shown in Figures 7 and 8, when the book rack is raised or extended. Said frame 35 has a central notched member 36 to be engaged by a prop 37 pivoted to the sides of the easel 25 for supporting the latter at different inclinations, as shown in Figure 7. Said prop is adapted to be folded into the plane of the easel when the book rack is retracted into the stand. When the frame 35 mm horizontal position it rests upon the top of the desk, as best shown in Figure 7. I i

The links or runners 28, which carry the easel and other members of the book rack, are automatically locked in raised position by hooks 38 engaging perforations or holes d0 in the channel bars 30, see Figures 8, 9 and 10. These hooks are pivoted oif center, as at 39, Figure 9, so that they normally hang as indicated in dotted lines in said figure with their lower hooked ends out of engagement with the holes 40 in the channel bars and are free to move along the said channel bars. Said hooks 38 are auton'iatically swung outward to engage their hooked lower ends with said holes 40 by cam members 41 on the inner pivoted ends of the side members of the frame 35. When said frame is folded upward upon the easel 25, the cam members 41 are out of engagement with the hooks 38, as shown in dotted lines in Figure 10, but when said frame is swung down to horizontal position for supporting the easel for use, said cam members engage the inner faces of the hooks and autoi'natically swing them to engage their lower hooked ends in the holes 40. As soon as the frame 85 is folded again, the cam members release the hooks which swing by gravity out of the holes 40 and permit the book rack to be retracted into the frame, as shown in Figure 5. The book rack may be conveniently 'aised from folded position by a handle or finger ring 42 inset in the strip 24 and adapted to fold down into the plane of said strip when not in use.

lVhen the book rack is folded into the stand, as shown in Figures 1 to 5, inclusive, said staud n'iay be used in the usual manner for prayer or devotional exercises, and as it portable and light in weight it may be easily moved from place to place as occasion requires. The top strip of the book rack is flush with the desk top when said book rack is folded and retracted, so that it does not offer any obstruction when the stand is used as a rest for books, or other purposes. At the same time, the rack may be quickly raised or projected for supporting a book in more convenient position for reading prayers therefron'i when desired.

l claim l. The combination with a stand having a slot in its top, of a book rack including an easel and a supporting frame adapted to be folded upon one another and retracted into the stand through said slot in substantially vertical position, a strip secured to the upper edge of the book rack for closing said slot when said rack is retracted, said strip lying flush with the top surface of the stand when the rack is retracted and a handle attached to said strip for projecting the rack.

2. The combination with a stand having a slot in its top, of a book rack including an easel and a supporting frame adapted to be folded upon one another and retracted into the stand through said slot in substantially vertical position, a strip secured to the upper edge of the rack foriclosing the slot when the rack is retracted, said strip lying flush with the top surface of the stand when the rack is retracted and a handle attached to and adapted to fold down into the plane of said strip for the purpose specified.

The combination with a stand having a slot in its top, of a book rack adapted to be folded and retracted vertically into said s and or supported above the same, said rack comprising an easel member, a supporting frame adapted to assume a horizontal position when the rack is in use, and a prop pivoted to the easel member and adapted to engage said supporting frame for holding said easel member at different inclinations, said supporting frame being also pivoted to the easel member and adapted to be folded fiat upon the same with the prop preparatory to the rack being retracted into the stand.

4. The combination with a stand having a slot in its top, of a book rack adapted to be folded and retracted into the stand through said slot, said rack comprisin an easel member, a supporting frame pivoted to the easel member and adapted to assume a horizontal position when the rack is in use, and a prop pivoted to the easel member and adapted to be folded flat upon the same and the rack then retracted vertically into the stand.

5. The combination with a stand having a slot in its top, of a book rack comprising an easel member, a supporting frame pivoted to said easel member, and a prop also pivoted to said easel member and adapted to engage said supporting frame for holding said easel member at different inclinations when the rack is projected from the stand through the slot therein, said supporting frame and prop being adapted to be folded fiat upon the easel member and the rack then retracted ver tically into the stand through said slot, and a strip secured to the upper edge of said rack for closing the slot when the rack is retracted.

6. The combination with a stand having a slot in its top, of a book rack adapted to be folded and retracted vertically into said stand through said slot, or projected from said slot and expanded into position for use on the stand, lateral guides for llm said rack in the stand, catches on the rack to interlock with said guides for retaining said rack in projected position when. expanded and means carried by a. part of said rack for automatically moving said catches into locking position when the rack is expanded.

7. The combination with a stand, of a book rack adapted to be folded and re tracted vertically into said stand. or projected and expanded into position for use on the stand, said rack having an easel member and a supporting frame pivoted thereto for swinging away from said easel member when the rack is expanded on the stand, catches pivotally mounted on the rack, and means carried by the supporting frame for automatically moving said catches into lo king position for retaining the rack in projected position when said supporting frame swung into expanded position.

8. The combination with a stand, of a book rack adapted to be folded and retracted vertically into said stand, or projected and expanded into position for use on the stand, catches for retaining the rack in projected position, and means carried by a part of the rack for automatically throwing said catches into locking position when the rack is expanded.

9. The combination with a stand, of a book rack adapted to be folded and tracted into said stand. or projected and expanded into position for use on the stand, said rack having an easel member and a supporting member pivoted thereto for swinging away from said easel member when the rack expanded, catches pivotally mounted on the easel member, and cams on the supporting member to engage said catches and swing them into locking position when said supporting member is swung away from said easel member in expanding the rack.

10. The combination with a stand, of a book rack adapted to be folded and retracted into said stand, or projected and expanded into position for use on the stand, said rack having an easel member and a supporting member pivoted thereto for swinging away from said easel member when the rack is expanded, catches pivoted to the easel member off center and adapted to normally hang in unlocking position when the rack is folded, and cams on the supporting member of the rack to engage said catches and move them into locking position when said supporting member is swung away from said easel member in expanding the rack.

11. The combination with a stand, of a book rack adapted to be foloed and retracted into said stand, or projected and expanded into position for use on the stand, chair neled guides for the lateral edges of the book rack when retracted into the stand, said guides having notches therein, catches pivoted on the rack and adapted to run in said guides and means for automatically moving said catches into engagement with said notches in the guides for locking the rack in projected position when the same is expanded.

l2. The combination with stand, of a book rack adapted to be folded and retracted into said stand, or projected and expanded upon said stand for use, channeled guides, runners arranged in said guides and pivotally connected to said. rack, hooked catches pivoted off center to said runners and normally arranged in unlocking position when the rack is folded, and means for automatically moving said catches to locked position for retainin the rack in projected position when said rack is expanded.

13. The combination with a stand, of a hook rack adapted to be folded and retracted into said stand, or projected and expanded for use on the stand, a guide frame for said rack having a transverse member, rods de pending from the rack and extending loose ly through said transverse member, and abutments on said rods to engage said member when the rack is projected for limiting the outward movement thereof.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

SANTE DU C A. 

